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Betsy Myers is on a mission to improve leadership by developing leaders and teams who infuse passion and purpose into their organizations by leading from both the head and the heart.

With over three decades as a thought leader, author, speaker, and consultant, Betsy is a renowned expert on emerging leadership trends and women’s leadership. Her extensive experience includes working with corporate, government, non-profit, and higher education leaders. She is the author of Take the Lead: Motivate, Inspire, and Bring Out the Best in Yourself and Everyone Around You.

Betsy is currently a Senior Advisor at the Warren Bennis Leadership Institute at the University of Cincinnati. She also serves on the Council on Advancing Women in Business for the Export-Import Bank of the United States.

A senior adviser to two U.S. presidents, Betsy served as President Clinton’s Advisor on Women’s Issues, was the first Director of the White House Office for Women’s Initiatives and Outreach, and was Chief Operating Officer of President Obama’s 2008 National Presidential Campaign.

Previously, Betsy was founding director of the Center for Women and Business at Bentley University, a repository of best practices for corporations to recruit and retain women leaders. She was Executive Director of the Center for Public Leadership at Harvard’s Kennedy School, focusing the Center’s teaching and research around authentic inner leadership. She held leadership roles in the U.S. Small Business Administration, including as the Director of the Office of Women’s Business Ownership at the SBA where she was an advocate for the 9.4 million women entrepreneurs in the United States.

Betsy has a Masters in Public Administration from Harvard Kennedy School.

A Quote From This Episode

• "There's a lot more we agree on than we disagree on...we have to move away from this 'othering.' We 'other' people - 'they're different from me, they're bad.'"

Resources Mentioned in This Episode

• Book - Take the Lead: Motivate, Inspire, and Bring Out the Best in Yourself and Everyone Around You
• HBR Podcast - Women at Work
• Scholar - Linda Nielsen
• Article - Research: Why Gender Bias Persists Even When Organizations Try to Curb It

About The International Leadership Association (ILA)

• The ILA was created in 1999 to bring together professionals interested in studying, practicing, and teaching leadership.

About Scott J. Allen

• Website
• Weekly Newsletter: The Leader's Edge
• Blog

My Approach to Hosting

• The views of my guests do not constitute "truth." Nor do they reflect my personal views in some instances. However, they are views to consider, and I hope they help you clarify your perspective. Nothing can replace your reflection, research, and exploration of the topic.